Not many South Asian people are living in Portugal. Those looking for work or refugees seem to be coming in large numbers to this country. There were South Asians in the former Portuguese colonies of Goa as well as Daman and Diu and also some in Mozambique. After independence, many South Asians who were Portuguese citizens came to live in Portugal.
In addition to Lisbon, they live in Porto, the Algarve, Coimbra, Leiria and Guarda. Some are Punjabis.
Many of the South Asians now live in the poor regions of Lisbon and are in low paid work.
These Hindus have religious festivals and institutions. A Hindu organization called the Hindu Community of Portugal came into being in 1982. There is a Hindu temple in Lisbon called Templo Hindu.
The Indians from Goa are largely Catholics. The Hindus are mainly from Mozambique. When Mozambique became independent, four to five thousand Hindus, mainly Gujaratis, left as they were worried about being persecuted.
Most of the South Asians in Portugal practice Hinduism, the ancient religion of India. Hinduism is a catch-all phrase for the local religions of South Asia, so it is very diverse. At the popular level, Hindus worship and serve the gods of the Hindu pantheon. They visit Hindu temples and offer prayers, food, flowers, and incense to their gods in hopes of gaining protection and benefits. They do not have a personal or familial relationship with their gods like Christians or Jews. There are other Hindus who are much more philosophical, especially among the Brahmins.
Almost all Hindus participate in yearly celebrations like Holi, the festival of colors and the start of spring / Diwali, the festival of lights/Navratri, the celebration of autumn/and Rama Navami, Rama's birthday.
Pray for the Holy Spirit to empower the South Asian Hindu people to open their eyes and see Jesus.
Pray for workers to go to the South Asian Hindu people, and for their hearts to be ready to receive their Savior. Pray for families of believers loving and serving others to grow reproducing churches. Pray for a chain reaction of families reaching families that result in thousands of new disciples who share their faith with others. Pray for grace and truth expanding into their entire society as all believers learn to love others.
Scripture Prayers for the South Asian, general in Portugal.
www.urmila.de/english/europeindex.html
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indians_in_Portugal
| Profile Source: Joshua Project |
